IISG staffers will join hundreds of scientists, environmentalists, and government representatives June 2-6 at the Conference on Great Lakes Research. Spread across each day of the conference, their presentations will cover vital work on Sea Grant education initiatives, new tools that help officials protect aquatic ecosystems in the Great Lakes region, and more.

Robin Goettel and Terri Hallesy will kick things off Tuesday morning with a close look at education strategies that improve Great Lakes literacy. Later in the session, Caitie McCoy will discuss a program piloted last year at two schools near the Grand Calumet River. The program was designed to teach students living in Areas of Concern about the science behind restoration projects. Attendees will also hear from Terri and others about Undo the Chemical Brew, a project that has collected 2.7 million unwanted pharmaceutical pills for safe disposal since 2010.

On Wednesday, members of the AIS outreach team will talk about resources they’ve developed to help water gardeners avoid invasive plants that are likely to spread in the Great Lakes. The resources are part of a larger effort to develop and implement risk assessment tools that can be used by resource managers and policy-makers to determine which commercially-sold aquatic species pose the greatest threat to the region.

IISG members will also be a part of several presentations on Wednesday and Thursday about environmental indicators communities can use to make sustainable land-use decisions. During the session, Brian Miller, Kristin TePas, and Marty Jaffe will introduce two web-based tools that help officials understand land use impacts on local aquatic environments and take steps towards securing the long-term health of the region’s natural resources.

The International Association for Great Lakes Research’s (IAGLR) 56th Annual Conference on Great Lakes Research is sponsored by IISG and Purdue University. To view the entire program, visit the conference website.

IISG Tweets

Our mission is to bring the latest science to Great Lakes communities through research, outreach, & education, but we must be just as devoted to diversity & equity as we are to science. We're committed to helping end systemic racism & discrimination: https://iiseagrant.org/about/about-us/#value